ConfectioneryNews Podcast

At the end of 2023, Colombian sustainable brand Chocolate Cordillera announced that 106 female cocoa farmers from Urabá Antioquia had completed the first module of its ATENEA sustainability program, giving some the confidence to become fully independent and start their own businesses. Alejandra Sarasty, Chief Global B2B Officer at Colombia's Compañia Nacional de Chocolates (owners of Chocolate Cordillera), explains the significance of the milestone for the women directly involved and the cocoa sector in general.

As many know, the cocoa industry is sometimes opaque and complex. Still, confessed chocolate-lover Jon Trask, who is also CEO of Dimitra, says his company's recently developed Blockchain Deforestation Platform could provide a solution to help farmers continue exporting their beans into the European Union – the world's largest chocolate market.

Fine Chocolate Industry Association (FCIA) has launched a new membership drive with special incentives as it seeks to attract more craft chocolate companies and grow its impact.

A recent article in National Geographic described York as ‘England's chocolate capital'. The city was home to two major confectionery companies, Terry's founded in 1767 and Rowntree's in 1862, the inventor of KitKat, which is still produced today at the Nestle factory. The city is also home to several artisan chocolatiers who are also keeping the tradition alive, including York Cocoa House.

As VP of Corporate Communications at Barry Callebaut Group, Christiaan Prins was at the forefront of many of the recent sustainability challenges in the cocoa sector. He has now established a new strategic communications consultancy, theLOOP Communications, to use his expertise to help companies enhance their trust factor in supply chains. In an exclusive interview for our latest podcast episode, he reflects on his time at Barry Callebaut and the issues still facing the chocolate industry.

Bunge is one of the leading producers and suppliers of specialty plant-based oils, fats, and proteins, many of which are used in the confectionery industry. Its supply chain is vast, and during these turbulent times food security is a concern along with sustainability. ConfectioneryNews talks with Nicolas Priou, Sustainability Manager at Bunge, on transparency and traceability – and also how Bunge is reacting to the impact of conflict (in Ukraine), drought, and trade disruptions to make sure food and ingredients are delivered to its worldwide consumers.

Premium sustainability chocolate brand MIA (Made in Africa) has carved out a unique reputation for itself since launching several years ago in Madagascar, crafting bean-to-bar products in cocoa-growing communities.

In closing this year's NCA State of the Industry Conference in Miami, John Downs, the association's President and CEO, said one of the ‘Strategic Bets' for the next 12 months is to address the largest Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) issues that impact the reputation of the chocolate and candy industry.

Have you ever wondered what the difference is between ‘CACAO' and ‘COCOA'? So do we! For consistency, ConfectioneryNews's editorial guide uses the word 'COCOA', except when quoting other sources, but it can get a little confusing ...

Cargill's commitment to cocoa sustainability stretches back to 2000, when it began offering seminars to cocoa farmers. Kate Clancy has been with Cargill and working in sustainability since 2011, taking up her recent position of Group Sustainability Director, Cocoa & Chocolate at the end of 2021. She speaks exclusively to CN on the initiative and wider issues affecting sustainability in the cocoa supply chain.

‘No one is doing what they should be doing: Both industry and governments will need to significantly change their business as usual. Let us be very clear; not a single stakeholder group is currently doing what they should be doing to ensure farmers achieve a living income.'

‘No one is doing what they should be doing: Both industry and governments will need to significantly change their business as usual. Let us be very clear; not a single stakeholder group is currently doing what they should be doing to ensure farmers achieve a living income.'

Magnum's broader female empowerment programme has got off to a fantastic start following the graduation of the first 198 women. Megan Willis, Head of Sustainable Sourcing at Unilever, Magnum's owner, gives ConfectioneryNews an update in an exclusive podcast interview.

The International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) 2021 annual report is the first in the organisation's new five-year strategy with the overarching aim to cover 100% of the cocoa supply chain in Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana with systems that prevent and address child labour by 2025.

The International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) 2021 annual report is the first in the organisation's new five-year strategy with the overarching aim to cover 100% of the cocoa supply chain in Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana with systems that prevent and address child labour by 2025.

Tessa Porter is the founder of Sprinkk, a candy development and manufacturing company based in Omaha, Nebraska. She is also a ‘candy scientist' and has a Masters in food science focusing on sugar crystallization from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an MBA from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. In our latest podcast episode, she talks us through some of the trends in candy innovation for the autumn.

Based on the concept of ‘colouring food with food', GNT's EXBERRY Organics are created from edible fruit, vegetables, and plants using traditional physical processing methods - and are bang on trend.

The brand celebrated its entry into the US market with a successful showing at the Sweets & Snacks Expo 2022 in Chicago. We talk to Eliza G Jahn, Head of Marketing at Katjes USA, to pick over some of the highlights of the event.

Barry Callebaut's The Future of Indulgence Report 2022 was previewed at the Group's booth during the Sweets & Snacks Expo 2022 in Chicago before publication this month. Bas Smit, Global VP of Marketing at Barry Callebaut talks us through some of its main findings.

The company has published its ‘Chocolate Foodprint' for 2021-22, which leads the way for artisan brands in transparency and regeneration in the cocoa sector. We talk to Philipp Kauffmann, the company's founder.

MIA, short for Made in Africa, is branching out from its base in Madagascar to work with cocoa farmers in West Africa. Co-founder Brett Beach tells ConfectioneryNews the reasons behind the move – and also provides an update on the situation on the island and for the sector in general.

The recent global weather events has highlighted the real threat of climate change. In a special podcast Michael Gidney, CEO of the Fairtrade Foundation, tells consumers about the impact of the climate crisis on its network of farmers and what they can do to help.

Belinda Borck, Impact Editor at Tony's Chocolonely, talks to CN on the company's latest impact report and why it is not driven by profit but by creating a fair price for the cocoa farmer and a transparent supply chain.

Nurtac Afridi talks to CN about the steps she has taken to transform GODIVA's business during her first year as CEO.

Scientists at Puratos claim to have made a breakthrough with a patent-pending ‘milk-alike plant-based chocolate,' which has received praise from industry experts and consumers.

Dream Pops a fast-growing plant-based ice cream and frozen novelty brands in North America, is setting its sites on moving into the confectionery aisle in 2022, competing with giants such as Hershey, Mars, and Ferrero.

Alvin Lee was appointed chairman of the Cocoa Association of Asia (CAA) at the beginning of 2021 for a two-year term. He is also Cargill's Cocoa & Chocolate's Commercial Director for Asia-Pacific, and in our podcast interview, he gives listeners a 360-degree view of the region in terms of trends, the market, challenges, and countries to watch.

Barry Callebaut's latest innovation, ‘Elix', is made from 100% pure cacaofruit and is described by the Group as the ‘first nutraceutical fruit drink' with proven health benefits.

Earlier this year, The International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) launched a new study to analyse data from various stakeholders' Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation Systems (CLMRS), with the aim of guiding improvements in their effectiveness at identifying, preventing and addressing child labour in the cocoa supply chain. In our latest podcast, Nick Weatherill, ICI's Executive Director, brings an update on progress so far, in what has been a challenging year for the cocoa sector.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic, there is a growing demand for consumers to know where the ingredients in the products they purchase come from, says Philippe Bernay, Commercial Marketing Lead EMEA, Cargill Cocoa.

In our latest podcast interview, we talked to Freek van der Knaap, Van Houten's Vice-President Vending & Beverages EMEA, about the launch of ruby as a chocolate drink powder, which is aimed at professionals working in the catering and confectionery industry.

Nate Saal is founder of CocoTerra, an all-in-one tabletop chocolate making machine that can produce real chocolate in the home, from conching to cooling in two hours, with the help of digital recipes and a guidance app. With the company now taking pre-orders, we caught up with Saal for an update on his innovation since the last time ConfectioneryNews spoke to him in September 2019.

Ethan Budiansky, the World Cocoa Foundation’s Director of Environment, shares some of the findings from the CFI’s latest reports and explains why ‘getting more trees in the ground’ is important.

In its latest Cocoa & Forests Initiative (CFI) Annual Report, Mondelēz International said it has distributed 712,771 trees across Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire in the from October 2019 to September 2020, with a total of 975,848 trees planted as part of its CFI commitment since 2018, bringing the global total to 2.2 million trees.

Paul Chibe, President and CEO of Ferrero North America, is the new Chairman of the National Confectioners Association Board of Trustees for a two-year term. In an exclusive ConfectioneryNews podcast, Chibe talks about his 30 years of experience within the confectionery and consumer products industries and why he is looking forward to his new role as Chairman at the NCA.

Paul Chibe, President and CEO of Ferrero North America, is the new Chairman of the National Confectioners Association Board of Trustees for a two-year term. In an exclusive ConfectioneryNews podcast, Chibe talks about his 30 years of experience within the confectionery and consumer products industries and why he is looking forward to his new role as Chairman at the NCA.

Ahead of his presentation at Chocoa21, Leopold Palmer from Twenty Degrees gives us the background story of Olam Cocoa’s new speciality cacao business.

UPL, a global leader in sustainable agriculture products and solutions, announced it has joined the European Cocoa Association (ECA) as an associate member. We talk to Florent Clair, UPL’s Sustainability Co-Ordinator, about the company's long history in the cocoa sector and why the time is right to commit to a more sustained environmental approach for farmers.

With Veganuary in full swing and more popular than ever, Paul Morris, Luker Chocolate’s UK sales manager, chats to ConfectioneryNews about the 123-year-old family run company and its single origin Cacao Fino de Aroma.

A wide-ranging career in the food service industry has more than adequately prepared Tracey Hughes for her current role as managing director of UK ingredients distributor Henley Bridge. In our latest podcast, she talks about the business challenges imposed by the coronavirus pandemic, how she got into the industry – and how lockdown has led to an appreciation of gardening.

Olam International’s vice president and global head of environment has called for more support from the financial sector to help change the sustainability landscape in the cocoa supply chain.

Interview: Carol Oldbury, managing director, Hames Chocolates.